Emma (novel)

Emma, a comedy of manners by Jane Austen, takes place in the fictional Surrey village of Highbury and its nearby estates—Hartfield, Randalls, and Donwell Abbey. The story focuses on the relationships within a handful of families, examining the lives and struggles of genteel women in Georgian–Regency England. Published in December 1815 (though the title page says 1816), it was Austen’s last novel to come out while she was alive; her final complete work, *Persuasion*, appeared after her death.

Austen wrote before starting that she planned to create a heroine only she would like. The opening line introduces Emma Woodhouse as “handsome, clever, and rich,” with a comfortable home and happy disposition, having lived nearly twenty-one years with little to trouble her. Spoiled, headstrong, and self-satisfied, Emma overestimates her matchmaking skills, ignores the dangers of meddling, and is often misled by her own imagination and perceptions. The novel has been adapted into many films, TV shows, and stage plays.

The plot begins when Emma’s former governess, Miss Taylor, marries Mr. Weston. Taking credit for the match, Emma decides to pair her new friend Harriet Smith with the vicar Mr. Elton, despite Mr. Knightley’s warnings. She convinces Harriet to refuse a proposal from the respectable farmer Robert Martin, though Harriet likes him. Mr. Elton, a social climber, mistakes Emma’s interest for love and proposes to her. When Emma explains she thought he wanted Harriet, he is outraged, viewing Harriet as beneath him. He leaves for Bath and returns with a pretentious, nouveau-riche wife, as Mr. Knightley predicted. Harriet is heartbroken, and Emma feels guilty.

Frank Churchill, Mr. Weston’s son, arrives for a two-week visit. Raised by a wealthy, domineering aunt, he rarely sees his father. Jane Fairfax also comes to stay with her aunt Miss Bates and grandmother Mrs. Bates. Now twenty-one, Jane intends to become a governess. She is well-educated but poor, and Emma envies her, annoyed by the praise she receives. Mrs. Elton takes Jane under her wing, promising to find her a position.

Emma suspects Jane arrived early because of an attraction to Mr. Dixon, Colonel Campbell’s new son-in-law. She shares this with Frank, who met Jane and the Campbells at Weymouth, and he seems to agree. Suspicion grows when a piano is sent anonymously for Jane. Emma thinks she is falling for Frank, but the feeling fades. The Eltons treat Harriet poorly, and Mr. Elton publicly snubs her at a ball. Mr. Knightley, who usually doesn’t dance, gallantly asks Harriet to dance. The next day, Frank brings Harriet to Hartfield after she faints near some gypsies. Emma mistakes Harriet’s gratitude for love of Frank. During an outing to Box Hill, Emma thoughtlessly mocks Miss Bates’s talkativeness.

Mr. Knightley scolds Emma, and she feels ashamed. She visits Miss Bates to make amends, learning that Jane has accepted a governess job from one of Mrs. Elton’s friends. Jane is ill and refuses to see Emma or accept her gifts. When Frank’s aunt dies, he and Jane reveal they have been secretly engaged since autumn. Frank knew his aunt would disapprove; the secrecy strained Jane, and they quarreled, with Jane ending the engagement. Frank’s uncle approves, and the engagement becomes public. Emma is annoyed at being so wrong.

Emma expects Harriet to be devastated, but Harriet says she loves Mr. Knightley. Encouraged by Emma and Mr. Knightley’s kindness, she hopes for a match. Startled, Emma realizes she loves Mr. Knightley herself. He comes to console her about Frank and Jane, and when she admits her foolishness, he proposes. She accepts. Harriet marries Robert Martin after his second proposal, the first couple to wed. Jane and Emma reconcile, and Frank and Jane visit the Westons. After the mourning period for Frank’s aunt ends, they will marry. By late November, Emma and Mr. Knightley are married, looking forward to “perfect happiness,” living at Hartfield with Mr. Woodhouse.

Emma Woodhouse, the protagonist, is a beautiful, high-spirited, intelligent, and somewhat spoiled young woman from the landed gentry. Nearly twenty-one when the story begins, she lost her mother young and has run Hartfield since her older sister married. Though intelligent, she lacks discipline for deep study. She is compassionate to the poor but has a strong sense of class. Her patience with her valetudinarian father is notable. Despite her maturity in some ways, she makes serious mistakes.